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Today it means

fabulous

extraordinary; legendary

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Where does the word "fabulous" come from? It comes from Latin fabulosus, and was adopted directly into English (1400s).

Read the full story

Where does the word "fabulous" come from? It comes from Latin fabulosus, and was adopted directly into English (1400s).

Fabulous’s story begins in Latin: fabulosus meant “celebrated in fable.” From 'fabula', story. It reached English by 1400s as fabulous. The casual sense 'marvellous' dates from the 1600s. Today, fabulous means extraordinary; legendary.

  1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient fabulosus "celebrated in fable", from 'fabula', story.
  2. Stage 2 · English · 1400s fabulous "legendary", the casual sense 'marvellous' dates from the 1600s.

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